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Prime Minister George Papandreou expressed optimism and confidence on
Greece's future, speaking at the closing session Thursday of the 13th
annual Symi Symposium held on the Saronic island of Poros.

"In nine months that have passed (since the PASOK government took
office), we have achieved the impossible. We succeeded both in avoiding
bankruptcy and proving that Greece is a worthy country once again," he
said.

Papandreou spoke of the global economic crisis and its Greek dimension,
and of the situation his government inherited when it took office,
stressing that if his government had allowed the crisis to progress,
the country today would have been led to bankruptcy and a deep and
long-lasting decline. "It was the gibbest crisis in Greece in recent
decades," he noted.

The premier said that the international and the Greek crisis had
certain "common symptoms", which were manifested "with a crisis in the
established mentalities, concepts and practices, aggravated corruption
and impunity and tolerated social and economic injustice", resulting in
the prevalence of the law of the powerful rather than the power of the
law.

"All this brought us to the brink of poverty, particularly during the
past six years of a conservative governance which invested in the
inherent weaknesses of the Greek economy and society in order to serve
specific interests and petty party choices that are counter to the
interests of the country," he said.

"We knew that we would face many problems and injustices when we
assumed the governance of the country, and we promised, and promise
agan today, to change many things...The country was on the brink of
bankruptcy and collapse, and its credibility was non-existent. But we
did not hesitate to shoulder our responsibilities and we waged battles
everywhere to put Greece back on its feet, and to prove that Greece is
a worthy country and can assume its responsibilities and correct its
mistakes," the premier said, adding that "we achieved this together,
the government and the Greek citizens".

Papandreou said that one of the government's important targets is "the
change of the country's model that will link the word value with the
word Greece, that will not mean corruption but absolute transparency."

Nobel prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz also addressed the
closing session, stressing that he is impressed by the way that Greece
is handling the crisis which it is experiencing. He said that Greece is
showing with the decisions taken by the government that it will turn
the crisis into an opportunity.

The members of the Hellenic Rescue Team (HRT) were honored by France at
an event in Thessaloniki marking the anniversary of the French National
Day.

French Consul General in Thessaloniki Christian Timonier, presenting
awards to the HRT members, stressed that "today's economic crisis needs
to be accompanied by acts of solidarity among the French people,
between the Greeks and French, and also among Europeans".

The HRT was set up in 1978 in Thessaloniki, number just 10 volunteer
rescuers. Today, the number has grown to more than 4,500 volunteers
throughout Greece, taking part in Search and Rescue (SAR) operations
all over the world. A non-governmental organisation, HRT is funded by
donations from friends and supporters.

The most recent operation was in Haiti, which made the HRT known
world-wide.

In the first of a total three SAR and humanitarian missions to Haiti,
the HRT and French rescuers were cheered on by the entire world as they
freed a 12-year-old Haitian boy from the rubble 12 days after a
catastrophic 7.0 Richter earthquake struck outside the country's
capital Port-au-Prince on January 12, 2010 killing more than 230,000
people.

Haiti, however, was the 19th country to which the HRT has rushed to
provide its assistance and expertise, including Indonesia after the
devastating 2004 Boxing Day tsunami and the massive earthquake in
Turkey in 1999.

The HRT's third and final mission to Haiti was completed month and a
half ago, and although the international spotlight has gone, the needs
remain, according to HRT chief Athanassios Sotirakis.

"The situation in Haiti remains the same. The needs are immense in
medical and pharmaceutical aid and food, and are aggravated further due
to the monsoons," Sotirakis tells ANA-MPA. "There are people who are
still sleeping under awnings, not even in tents," he stresses.

HRT's next project is to build an orphanage in Haiti that will be home
to 58 children who lost their homes and families in the disaster, a
project that will be financed by Greek businesswoman Elena Amvrosiadou.
The project is expected to be completed in eight months. "It was a very
time-consuming procedure, because all the public services had been
razed to the ground and we couldnāt get the necessary licenses,"
Sotirakis explains.

"Our reward will come the day when we will see the Greek flag raised
over the orphanage, something that we pledge will happen," the HRT
leader says.